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COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 







SUNSHINE ROSE 



A big jac\ rabbit dashed past, leaping several jeet 
at a time 














SUNSHINE ROSE 

The Story of a Shetland Pony 


By 

JOHN Y. BEATY / 

it 

Drawings by 

DON NELSON / 


THOMAS S. ROCKWELL COMPANY 

CHICAGO 

1931 


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Copyright, 1931, by 
THOMAS S. ROCKWELL COMPANY 
CHICAGO 


Printed in the United States of America 


©Cl A 38863 ^(2— 

JUN 15 mu 



CONTENTS 


I How Sunshine Rose Came to Mosely 

Hill Farm 7 

A little girl is ill—her father buys a pony — 
Roberta and her pet become acquainted. 

II How Sunshine Rose Got Her Name 16 
Roberta grows well again—she explains the 
pony's new name—Sunshine Rose is 
christened. 

III Cornered by a Wolf 22 

Sunshine Rose takes his new mistress for a 
ride—a rustle in the tall grass and a wolf — 
a pony to the rescue—Sunshine Rose saves 
a life. 

IV Lost in a Mammoth Snow Bank 29 

They go visiting—Sunshine Rose slips in a 
snow ban\— an tcy bath—they finally reach 
their destination. 

V Sunshine Rose Proves to Be a Good 

Watchdog 38 

Apples are missing from the orchard — Sun¬ 
shine Rose teaches the thieves a lesson — 
Roberta and her pony play detective. 


45 


VI Sunshine Rose Discovers a Mysterious 
Cave 

Misfortune overtakes a pony—his mistress 
follows him into a cave—they ma\e a dis¬ 
covery—safety at last—their discovery brings 
money . 

VII Sunshine Rose Proves Her Friendship 57 
A friend in distress—Sunshine Rose again 
comes to the rescue—a pony becomes a hero. 


Chapter I 


HOW SUNSHINE ROSE CAME TO 
MOSELY HILL FARM 

R OBERTA was very ill. For eight weeks 
- she lay in bed in the dining room on 
Mosely Hill Farm. The doctor finally ex¬ 
plained that he had given all the medical care 
he could, and there probably was only one 
thing that would start her on the road to 
improvement. 

He explained it this way. “She has been so 
ill for such a long time that she has almost lost 
interest in life. She pays little attention to 
what is going on about her, she does not care 
to read, she does not listen when stories are 
read to her, and nothing that she sees through 
the window near her bed seems to attract her 
attention. 

“Isn’t there something,” asked the doctor, 
“that Roberta has always wanted? If some¬ 
how we could get her to take a new interest in 


8 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


life, there might be some hope of her recovery.” 

Farmer John and his wife thought over the 
various things that Roberta had expressed a 
desire for and concluded that the one thing she 
seemed to want more than anything else was 
a pony. Many times she had asked for one, 
but for one reason or another a pony had never 
been purchased. 

When the doctor was told that Roberta had 
always wanted a pony, he said, “That’s the 
very thing she needs. A pony will accomplish 
more for Roberta than all the medicine I 
could give her.” 

So Farmer John left early next morning for 
a farm a few miles away where he had seen 
three or four ponies in the pasture. He tried 
to remember what kind of a pony seemed to 
appeal to Roberta most, and he decided that 
a plump little animal with a long streak of 
white down her nose and patches of white on 
her round body was the pony that would please 
his daughter most. 

The next morning the pony was delivered 
to the farm. 


SUNSHINE ROSE AT MOSELY HILL FARM 9 


Roberta was too ill to be taken from the 
house; so some method had to be devised to 
let her know that the one thing she had desired 
for such a long time had been secured. 

She paid so little attention to what was said 
to her that Farmer John concluded that telling 
her the pony was in the barn would not be 
sufficient to arouse her interest. 

Her bed was then in the corner of the dining 
room with a window at its head and another 
window at the side. After looking over the 
situation, Farmer John concluded that he 
would lead the pony up on the porch, so that 
Roberta could see her through the window at 
the side of her bed. 

Roberta had been awake for about an hour 
and a half. Her mother was working in the 
kitchen. Suddenly there was a scraping noise 
on the window beside her bed. It startled her, 
and she looked up. There was something 
moving just outside the glass. Roberta’s eyes 
opened wide. She called to her mother half 
in fright and half in surprise. 

“Mother, what is that on the porch?” 


10 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


“Well, I do believe it is a pony,” answered 
her mother. 

“That’s what I thought,” said Roberta, “but 
whose pony is it?” 

“Do you like the pony, dear?” 

“Oh, yes, hasn’t she the prettiest face. See 
that white streak down her nose. Why does 
she rub her nose against the glass, Mother?” 

“It must be because she sees you, and wants 
to talk to you in pony language.” 

“Oh, Mother, I wish I could talk pony 
language. Can you?” 

“No, dear, I don’t believe I can, but I believe 
I understand what the pony is trying to say.” 

“What is it, Mother? What is the pony 
saying?” 

“I think she is saying, ‘I wish that you would 
come out and play with me.’ Just see how 
she looks at you. See how her ears point 
forward. She is wishing you would talk to 
her. A pony, you know, can point its ears 
either forward or backward. When she is 
being driven from behind, she points her ears 
backward to hear what the driver is going to 






SUNSHINE ROSE AT MOSELY HILL FARM 11 


say to her. When she is listening to something 
from in front of her, she points her ears 
forward, so that she can hear better. You are 
in front of her and she is pointing her ears 
toward you to see if you will talk to her.” 

“Oh, mother, I will talk to her. Open the 
window, so that she can hear what I say.” 

Her mother lifted the sash and at first the 
pony backed away. But slowly and cautiously 
she approached the window again and first 
touched her nostril to the window sill. She 
kept her eyes on Roberta and pointed her ears 
forward, listening intently. Finally, she turned 
her head a little to one side and looked about 
the room. Roberta’s mother quietly backed 
away from the window and sat down in a chair 
on the far side of the room. The pony became 
a little more satisfied with what she saw, 
because Roberta was lying perfectly still and no 
one else was moving about. 

The pony again turned her attention to the 
bed. This time she thrust her nose a little 
farther into the room. Then Roberta began 
to talk to her. 


12 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


“Hello, pony, I’m glad you came to see me. 
I have been wanting to see a pony for a long 
time, but I have been ill so long that I could 
not get out to the pasture. I remember seeing 
you before I became ill when we were going to 
church, one Sunday morning. You were stand¬ 
ing under a big tree near the creek just beyond 
Quenton’s Corners. You’re a nice pony. I 
like you.” 

All of this time the pony was shifting her 
ears back and forth, pointing them most of 
the time toward Roberta. She nodded her 
head a little every now and then. Each time 
the pony nodded her head, Roberta felt that 
she understood. The pony was agreeing with 
what she said. 

Finally the pony’s nose almost touched the 
blanket that covered the little girl. Roberta 
put out her hand, but she could not quite reach 
the pony’s nose. After talking a little longer, 
the pony came still closer and Roberta was able 
to put her hand on the soft nose that was now 
so close to her. 

The conversation lasted for nearly ten 






SUNSHINE ROSE AT MOSELY HILL FARM 13 

minutes, the pony seeming to enjoy the visit 
as much as Roberta. In reality, it was accom¬ 
plishing wonders for the sick child. 

Finally, Roberta began to show that she was 
getting rather tired, and some unseen hand 
guided the pony’s head back to the window. 
Then mother came and closed the sash. 

At noon when Farmer John came in, he 
entered the dining room and Roberta called to 
him in a glad voice: 

“Daddy, come here. I had the most wonder¬ 
ful dream this morning. I dreamed that a 
pony came right up on the porch and rubbed 
her nose against the windowpane. Then mother 
opened the window. The pony put her head 
through, and I talked to her. And, Daddy, 
she talked to me. We talked together a long 
time, and the pony understood what I said and 
I understood what she said. Oh, Daddy, I 
wonder if it really was a dream.” 

“Do you wish it were really true?” asked 
Farmer John. 

“Oh, Daddy, I would be so happy if I had 
a pony just like the one I saw in my dream.” 


14 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


Farmer John smiled. “After you have eaten 
your dinner, close your eyes again and perhaps 
the pony will come back,” he suggested. 

After the meal was over, Roberta closed her 
eyes and slept for a short time. Finally, her 
mother saw her stirring and knew that her nap 
was over. She went to the kitchen door and 
waved her handkerchief. 

Shortly after this, Roberta heard a noise on 
the window pane again. 

“Oh, Mother, Mother,” she called, “the 
pony is here again.” 

Mother came promptly and opened the sash, 
and the experience of the morning was repeated. 

“Mother, am I asleep?” asked Roberta. 

“No, dear, you are wide awake.” 

“Mother, is this pony real?” 

“Yes, dear, this is the same pony that was here 
this morning, and it wasn’t a dream at all.” 

“But where did the pony come from, 
Mother?” 

“Daddy bought the pony at the farm near 
Quenton’s Corners. She belongs to you.” 

“Oh, Mother, don’t tell me what isn’t true.” 




SUNSHINE ROSE AT MOSELY HILL FARM IS 


“But that is the truth, dear. This pony is 
yours for ever and ever.” 

“Mother, tell me again.” 

Five times Roberta’s mother repeated that 
the pony had been purchased by her father for 
Roberta. Each time Roberta wanted to hear 
it again. Finally, her mother nodded through 
the window and Farmer John stepped into 
view. 

“Your dream has come true, Roberta,” he 
said. “The pony is real and is yours, and she 
can come to the window here every day to 
talk with you until you are well enough to 
go riding on her back. I have a nice saddle 
and a pretty bridle, and the pony is just as 
anxious as you are for you to be her little play¬ 
mate.” 

“Oh, I believe that, Daddy. She has talked 
to me so lovingly that I can see she wants some¬ 
body to play with her. Whenever I touch her 
nose, she half closes her eyes and acts a good 
deal like our old tabby cat does when I stroke 
her back. I want to ride through the woods 
on the pony. I want to be well, Daddy.” 


Chapter II 


HOW SUNSHINE ROSE GOT HER 
NAME 

HEN the doctor came the next day, he 



V V examined Roberta and then walked into 
the kitchen and spoke with her mother. 

“The child is wonderfully improved. Did 
you get her the pony?” 

“Yes, doctor, she saw the pony twice yester¬ 
day, and the last thing she said when we took 
the pony away was, ‘I want to be well, I want 
to be well.’ ” 

“That is all the medicine she will need from 
now on,” said the doctor, “the pony has ac¬ 
complished what I could not. She has made 
Roberta take a lively interest in life. If she 
wants to get well, she will. Let her see the 
pony as often as you conveniently can, and feed 
her well of the things I have already suggested, 
and encourage her to sit up as soon as she 


feels like it.” 


16 


HOW SUNSHINE ROSE GOT HER NAME 17 


Within a week, Roberta was sitting in a chair 
by the porch window instead of lying in bed, 
and the pony came three times a day and talked 
with her for ten or fifteen minutes at a time. 
Roberta was sure that she understood every¬ 
thing the pony said, and even her mother and 
father agreed that the pony understood every 
word that Roberta said. 

One day Roberta broke forth in the middle 
of her noon meal with: “Daddy, do you know 
what I am going to call my pony?” 

“I have been wondering what you would like 
to call her,” replied Farmer John. “You may 
name her anything you please.” 

Roberta immediately forgot that her meal 
had not been finished, and clapping her hands, 
she said, “I know exactly what I am going to 
call my pony.” 

“What is it?” asked her mother. 

“Sunshine Rose.” 

“That is a pretty name,” her mother agreed, 
“but what made you select that name?” 

“Well, Mother, I’ll explain it to you. The 
first day the pony looked through the window 


18 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


at me, it seemed like a ray of sunshine. That 
white streak down the front of her face was 
so bright, and she made me feel so good that 
for a long time I have been thinking that the 
pony has helped to make me well.” 

“The doctor says that the pony has made 
you well,” said her mother. 

“Well, Mother, if that is the case, it seems 
to me that Sunshine is a good name for the 
pony, because sunshine makes sick folks well, 
doesn’t it?” 

“Yes,” agreed her father, “but why do you 
call her Rose?” 

“Well, Daddy, I’ll tell you where the Rose 
name comes from. The first day I was able 
to sit up, I looked out of the window and saw 
a beautiful yellow rose at the corner of the 
house. It had been such a long time since I 
had seen the flowers outside. I had been think¬ 
ing of the pony as a ray of sunshine coming 
through the window. The flowers made me 
feel good just like the pony did, and I thought 
it would be a good thing to call the pony Sun¬ 
shine Rose.” 


HOW SUNSHINE ROSE GOT HER NAME 19 


“I heartily agree with you,” said her mother, 
“and I know we will always think of Sunshine 
Rose as the medicine that made you well.” 

“But, Mother, the doctor won’t like to have 
you say that,” said Roberta. “Maybe he thinks 
that his medicine made me well.” 

“No, dear,” explained her father, “I will tell 
you now how we happened to get the pony. 
You were so ill that you took practically no 
interest in anything. We tried to read to you, 
but you did not hear what we were reading. 
You were not interested in eating, and Doctor 
Sheaff said that no medicine he could give 
would do what Sunshine Rose has done. He 
asked us if we could think of anything that 
you had wanted. We remembered you had 
always admired the ponies in the pasture near 
Quenton’s Corners. We told the doctor that 
we thought perhaps a pony was what you 
wanted more than anything else. Doctor 
Sheaff said that something alive would cer¬ 
tainly be the ideal thing to make you want to 
get well. So I drove to Quenton’s Corners and 
bought Sunshine Rose. 



20 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


“The first day you saw her you said ‘I want 
to be well, I want to be well/ and now you are 
almost ready to go out-of-doors and ride 
through the woods with your new playmate.” 

“Oh, Sunshine Rose is just the right name,” 
said Roberta. “Between you and me, Dad, I 
think I am a pretty good namer. But Daddy, 
do you really think that Sunshine Rose made 
me well?” 

“The doctor says that she did.” 

“Then she saved my life, didn’t she?” 

“Yes, I think she did. The doctor told us 
that he did not know of anything medicine 
could do for you more than it had already 
done.” 

“Daddy, I didn’t know that ponies could 
save children’s lives.” 

“Neither did I, my dear, but Sunshine Rose 
certainly saved yours.” 

“Daddy, I am going to be just as kind to her 
as I can. I am going to take care of her myself, 
as long as she lives. Have you got a nice warm 
stall for her in the barn?” 

“Yes, I fixed up a box stall for her to be in 


HOW SUNSHINE ROSE GOT HER NAME 21 


when the weather is cold or damp. But she 
enjoys herself a lot more in the orchard pasture 
when the weather is good.” 

“Oh, keep her in the orchard pasture all the 
time until I get well enough to go out and 
play with her. I can see the orchard pasture 
from my window. 

“But, Daddy, how can Rose know her 
name?” 

“I think she will understand if you tell her. 
She seems to understand everything you say.” 

“Won’t you bring her here now, Daddy? 
Then I can tell her what her name is. It must 
be terribly embarrassing to live as long as she 
has without any name. Go get her now, Daddy, 
and let me tell her that her name is Sunshine 
Rose” 


Chapter III 


CORNERED BY A WOLF 

R OBERTA usually spent her Saturday after- 
- noons riding Rose across the fields and 
through the woods. One Saturday afternoon 
in August, they were cantering through a 
meadow on Mosely Hill Farm where the grass 
was rather tall. 

Roberta did not realize that there might be 
a dangerous animal lurking in this tall grass, 
but Sunshine Rose seemed to be a bit uneasy. 
She would slow her gait every now and then, 
and was constantly throwing her head from one 
side to another, pointing her ears in every direc¬ 
tion, listening intently. 

Roberta hardly noticed this because she was 
enjoying her ride. But Sunshine Rose had some 
experiences in her mind with which Roberta 
was not familiar. She had been in this meadow 
before. 


22 


CORNERED BY A WOLF 


23 


When they came to a big tree on a knoll at 
one corner of the meadow, Roberta stopped her 
pony and got down from the saddle. Sunshine 
Rose had been trained not to wander away 
when the reins were thrown over her head. So 
Roberta threw the reins down and walked some 
little distance away. 

The corner of the field was marked by a 
woven wire fence, and Roberta saw in the grass 
in this corner some tall oxeye daisies. Her 
mother was so fond of daisies that Roberta 
thought it would be a nice thing to take a large 
bouquet of these to her. She walked into the 
tall grass without suspecting any danger. Sun¬ 
shine Rose was some distance away at the time, 
remaining where Roberta had dismounted. 
But she kept her eyes on her little mistress. 

Suddenly Roberta was startled. There was 
a loud tramping in the tall grass as some heavy 
body bounded through it. Roberta was near 
the corner of the fence and was just about ready 
to pick the daisies. She stopped and watched 
the moving object, thinking that it was some 
animal that would run away. 


24 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


But as she stood watching it, the animal 
turned about and came to a point between 
her and Sunshine Rose. At first she thought 
it was a big dog, but when the animal opened 
its mouth, she saw long, sharp teeth and realized 
that it was not a dog at all. 

Roberta was very much frightened. She 
could not think of anything to do to protect 
herself. If she climbed the fence, she knew that 
the animal could easily reach her, and she 
thought that if she were able to get over to the 
other side of the fence, the animal could get 
over just as easily as she. 

The animal which was standing in front of 
her was a wolf. As Roberta watched him, he 
crouched, and with his bead-like eyes staring 
sharply at her, he moved slowly toward her. 
Roberta was too frightened to scream. 

When the wolf was just a few feet from her, 
he gave a sharp growl and sprang. Roberta’s 
knees were so weak that she dropped to the 
ground at about the same moment the wolf 
sprang toward her. Because of this, the wolf 
did not strike her with his sharp teeth, but his 



Before the wolf was able to spring a second time, 
Sunshine Rose struc\ with her two front feet 

25 










CORNERED BY A WOLF 


27 


heavy body bumped against hers, and the wolf 
rolled away in the grass. 

This all happened in fewer seconds than it 
has taken you to read about it. Roberta could 
not move quickly enough to get away from the 
vicious creature that was about to attack her 
again. So she turned her face to the ground 
and covered her eyes with her hands and lay 
still. 

In the meantime, Sunshine Rose had not been 
idle. She saw the wolf when it first appeared 
and immediately started to rescue her little mis¬ 
tress. Before the wolf was able to spring the 
second time, Sunshine Rose had landed on his 
evil body with her two front feet. This stunned 
the wolf sufficiently to prevent him from 
springing. Before he had regained his com¬ 
posure, Sunshine Rose had bruised his head 
with many sharp and rapid blows with her 
front feet. 

In the meantime, Roberta heard the battle 
between her pony and the wolf and upon look¬ 
ing up, realized that her opportunity to escape 
had come. 


28 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


She climbed quickly into the saddle, grasping 
the reins as she did so, and Sunshine Rose gal¬ 
loped away with her to safety while the wolf 
lay bleeding on the ground. 

You can imagine how excited Roberta was 
when she related her adventure to her father 
and mother that evening, and perhaps you will 
understand why Sunshine Rose received two 
apples as part of her meal that night 



Chapter IV 


LOST IN A MAMMOTH SNOW BANK 

R OBERTA’S grandmother lived about three 
- miles from Mosely Hill Farm. That is, 
it was only three miles when Roberta rode 
through the woods, but if the trip were made 
around the road, it was nearly twice that far. 

One winter’s afternoon, she set out to make 
the trip just after a severe snowstorm had sub¬ 
sided. Sunshine Rose trotted along the high 
part of the road that led toward the woods. 
There the wind had blown the snow away and 
the traveling was easy. 

When they came to a long stretch where there 
was a bank on each side, traveling was ex¬ 
tremely difficult. The road was deep with snow, 
and as Sunshine Rose tried to get through, 
Roberta had difficulty in holding on. 

The snow was so deep that the only way Sun¬ 
shine Rose could move ahead was by standing 


29 


30 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


on her hind feet and leaping forward. It seemed 
that each leap took her into deeper snow. 

The pony became almost exhausted. Roberta 
was in the habit of talking to her and she now 
told the pony that she thought it would be better 
to go back and try to find a way along the 
edge of the bank, on the left side of the road. 

The pony floundered back to higher ground 
and was able to make her way along the fence. 

At length they came to an open gate. It 
was not the gate through which they usually 
entered the woods pasture on the way to 
Grandmother’s, but the road looked so bad 
ahead that Roberta pulled the reins, and Sun¬ 
shine Rose entered the pasture. 

It was much easier traveling now, and Sun¬ 
shine Rose cantered along making good head¬ 
way until finally they came to the edge of the 
woods. 

Roberta stopped the pony to allow her to 
rest. She had worked so hard in trying to get 
through the snow drift that she was not only 
tired, but covered with perspiration. 

While the pony was resting, Roberta looked 



LOST IN A MAMMOTH SNOW BANK 31 


about. The branches of the trees were covered 
with the fresh snow. The storm had left the 
branches covered in such a way as to make the 
most beautiful picture you can imagine. 

It was not extremely cold, but the air was 
bracing, and Roberta felt that she had never 
been happier in her life. As she sat there, a little 
squirrel chattered to her from a near-by oak tree. 
He whisked his tail and ran back and forth. 

Then a big jack rabbit dashed past, leaping 
several feet at a time, quickly changing his 
course when he spied the pony. 

Roberta spoke to Sunshine Rose and they 
started off again. This route through the woods 
was a little unfamiliar, and, after they had gone 
some distance, Roberta began to wonder 
whether they were going in the right direction. 

She had learned, however, that when she was 
in doubt, it was usually better to trust to the in¬ 
stinct of the pony, for the pony could always 
find her way home. Roberta thought that per¬ 
haps she could find her way to Grandmother’s 
house. So she let the reins lie loosely on the 
pony’s neck. 




32 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


They came to a very steep hill. At the bot¬ 
tom of the hill was a small stream with which 
Roberta was not familiar. She was afraid they 
were lost. But not knowing which way to turn, 
she did not attempt to change the pony’s course. 

The pony worked her way slowly down the 
hill, and it appeared that they would reach the 
bottom safely. But suddenly the pony’s body 
lurched forward, and the next Roberta realized, 
she was being engulfed in a mountain of soft 
snow. The pony had plunged headlong from 
a steep bank into a huge snowdrift. 

It was little wonder that the pony made the 
mistake of stepping off of this bank, for the 
snow had blown into a drift which extended so 
far out from the bank’s edge that the two wan¬ 
derers were completely surrounded by snow. 

The pony tried to regain her feet, and Roberta 
slipped out of the saddle, thinking that the 
pony might be able to get up easier without her 
added weight. 

When the pony finally landed right side up, 
they were in a deep hole in the soft snow. The 
bank was so steep that it looked impossible to 


LOST IN A MAMMOTH SNOW BANK 33 


climb back to the point from which they had 
fallen. Roberta thought that perhaps they 
could dig their way out. 

She started to pull the snow away from in 
front of her, thinking that she might make a 
little tunnel, for the snow was two or three feet 
higher than her head. She seemed to be suc¬ 
ceeding very well when her hands struck some¬ 
thing solid. She was going in the wrong direc¬ 
tion and had reached the side of the hill. 

Sunshine Rose had been watching with in¬ 
terest and she seemed to realize the mistake 
Roberta had made. She turned about and 
started to paw with her front feet on the op¬ 
posite side. As she did so, the snow fell away 
and she gradually moved forward into a large 
tunnel she thus made. 

After she had been digging for a few sec¬ 
onds, she tumbled forward. She had reached 
the edge of the snowbank and her body hurled 
through the opening she had made and rolled 
down the side of the hill. Before she could re¬ 
gain her balance, she had tumbled into the 
stream. 


34 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


Roberta was frightened. She was not sure 
whether her pony could get out of the water 
or not. But the stream was not deep, and Sun¬ 
shine Rose soon regained her feet. She scram¬ 
bled out on the opposite side. That left Roberta 
on one side and the pony on the other. The 
pony stood there, gazing at her little mistress, 
and shaking the water from herself. 

Roberta looked up and down the stream to 
see if she could find a way to get across. Here 
and there were patches of ice, but she was afraid 
that none of them were strong enough to hold 
her weight. Finally she thought she saw an 
old tree trunk which had been blown across the 
water a little farther up the stream. She went 
to it and found that it was indeed a natural 
bridge over which she could cross. 

Above the tree the water was frozen; below, 
it was running open. She stepped on to the log 
and was able to get about half way across when 
she felt that she was losing her balance. In 
fear of falling, she put one foot on to the ice. 
When she did so, the ice began to crack. She 
could feel it giving way under her weight. She 


LOST IN A MAMMOTH SNOW BANK 35 

did not want to have a cold bath like Sunshine 
Rose. So she quickly dropped to her knees on 
the log pulling her foot back on to the old tree 
and crawled the rest of the way on her hands 
and knees. 

When she was safely on the other side, she 
looked at Sunshine Rose. 

“What a mess you are,” she said. “You are 
all wet. My saddle is all wet, and it is cold, and 
we are lost.” 

Sunshine Rose put her head close to the 
ground and began to sniff around, walking here 
and there sniffing at the snow. Finally she 
came to a little mound of snow and began to 
paw at it with her feet. When the pony had 
pawed the snow away, Roberta discovered a 
heavy tuft of dry grass. 

“Sunshine Rose,” she said, “I do believe you 
know more than I do. You found this grass 
so that I could pull it and wipe the water off 
of you.” 

She pulled a handful of grass and wiped the 
pony’s face and neck. She pulled more until 
the pony’s body was fairly dry. 


36 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


In the meantime, it had grown rather dark 
and Roberta said to Sunshine Rose: “It is up 
to you, little pony, to find Grandma’s house as 
soon as you can, or we both will be sick.” 

The pony lifted her head, pointed her ears 
forward and blew through her nostrils. She 
had accepted the challenge. She started out on 
a canter, moving her head this way and that 
way, pointing her ears in every direction, and 
occasionally throwing her head toward the 
ground. 

Finally Roberta saw something like a light. 

“Is that Grandma’s house, Sunshine Rose?” 
she asked. 

The pony cantered faster and soon stopped 
short before a gate. It was indeed Grandma’s 
house. Roberta clambered down and opened 
the gate. Sunshine Rose dashed through it 
quickly and, instead of stopping to wait for her 
little mistress, trotted through an open barn 
door and found the way into the stall which it 
was her custom to occupy on trips of this kind. 

Roberta hurried to the house and told Grand¬ 
ma and Grandpa of her experience. 


LOST IN A MAMMOTH SNOW BANK 37 


“Where is Sunshine Rose?” asked Grandpa. 

“I am not sure,” said Roberta, “but the last 
I saw of her she was dashing through the door 
into the barn.” 

Grandpa lit his lantern and went out into 
the stable and made Sunshine Rose comfortable 
for the night. He fastened a big blanket on 
her, gave her plenty of fresh straw, and closed 
all of the barn doors tightly. 

Roberta, of course, was given a nice warm 
supper and put to bed after having a hot bath. 

Both arose next morning extremely glad that 
their trying experience was over, but just as 
healthy and ready for fun as ever. 




Chapter V 


SUNSHINE ROSE PROVES TO BE A 
GOOD WATCHDOG 

F ARMER JOHN came into the house one 
evening with his face rather flushed.” 

“I wonder who has been stealing the apples 
from that tree in the back corner of the or¬ 
chard,” he said. “Have you been picking apples 
there?” 

Roberta’s mother replied that she had not 
been in the orchard for several days. 

“I had my eye on a limb that was weighted 
down with some of the finest apples I have ever 
seen,” continued Farmer John, “and now the 
limb is entirely bare.” 

“I think I would see if anyone went into the 
orchard in the daytime,” said Roberta’s mother, 
“because I can see through the dining room 
window, even when I am working in the 
kitchen.” 

“Well, if anybody gets into that orchard to- 


38 


SUNSHINE ROSE A GOOD WATCHDOG 39 


night, I am going to know about it,” said 
Farmer John. 

“What are you going to do?” inquired 
Roberta. 

“I am going to sit in the bedroom and watch. 
No one can see me from the orchard, and, if it 
is moonlight, I can see them.” 

About ten o’clock that night, Roberta was 
awakened by the loud laughter of her father. 
When she raised up in bed, she saw that he was 
sitting at the window and was holding his sides 
as he laughed. 

“I never saw such a funny thing in my life,” 
he said. 

“What is it, Daddy?” inquired Roberta. 
Roberta’s mother also wanted to know what 
had happened. 

“Well,” said her father, “I have found the 
best watchdog for our orchard. It is your pony, 
Roberta. I put Sunshine Rose in the orchard 
pasture last night, and just a little while ago 
I saw some boys sneaking into the orchard. 
One by one they climl 


and dropped down on 




40 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


“I was just about ready to go downstairs and 
catch them in the act of stealing the apples, 
when I heard one of them scream. I looked 
out quickly. There he was running across the 
pasture with Sunshine Rose close behind him, 
reaching out her head at about every other step 
and nipping the boy’s pants as he ran. Every 
time she nipped, the boy screamed. When they 
reached the fence, the boy tried to scramble 
over, and Sunshine Rose secured a good hold on 
the seat of his trousers and hung on. 

“In the meantime, the other boys were run¬ 
ning in all directions. The boy who was 
caught, shouted for help. The other boys were 
almost too frightened to come near. But Sun¬ 
shine Rose thought she had fun enough for 
one night and gave the boy a push with her 
nose. He toppled over the fence to the other 
side, leaving part of his trousers on the top 
wire.” 

“Who were the boys, Daddy, do you know?” 

“Just wait here,” said her father, “and I will 
go out and get the evidence, and we will see 
if we can figure out whose trousers were torn.” 



Sunshine Rose gave him a push with her nose and 
he toppled over the fence 


41 




























SUNSHINE ROSE A GOOD WATCHDOG 43 


Her father soon returned and the family ex¬ 
amined the cloth. 

“Oh, I know who it was, Daddy. It was 
Eddy Hermantrout. He is one of the boys that 
lives on the old Ensign place. I remember now 
that I noticed his pants were rather a peculiar 
color, the other day in school, and I am sure 
this is a piece of his pants.” 

“If you want to have some fun,” suggested 
her father, “you tie this cloth on the front of 
Sunshine Rose’s bridle and ride her to school 
tomorrow. Make sure that Eddy sees you. See 
if he recognizes the cloth.” 

Roberta did as her father suggested. The 
cloth was tied in a conspicuous place near the 
forelock of the pony and it hung down, covering 
up a part of the white stripe that ran down 
Sunshine Rose’s nose. 

When they neared the schoolhouse, a boy 
stepped out of the bushes at the side of the road. 
It frightened the pony at first, but the boy was 
apparently just as much astonished, for as he 
looked at the pony, he discovered the piece of 
cloth hanging on her forehead. He dived back 


44 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


into the bushes and Sunshine Rose started after 
him. 

Roberta tried to hold the pony back, but she 
could not. The boy had a good head start this 
time, however, and he was able to roll under 
a barbed wire fence and get safely away. 

Roberta sat on the pony’s back and watched 
him, and laughed with glee. The pony threw 
her head into the air, pointed her ears forward, 
distended her nostrils and snorted. 

That night Roberta told the story to her 
father. “Well,” said Farmer John, “I guess 
we have found the best watchdog for our or¬ 
chard. Sunshine Rose is to be in charge of that 
part of our farm from now on.” 



Chapter VI 


SUNSHINE ROSE DISCOVERS A 
MYSTERIOUS CAVE 

O NE of the chief delights of both Sunshine 
Rose and her little mistress was to make 
an all-day trip wandering through the hills, 
across the meadows, and under the big trees 
of the woods that were plentiful in the vicinity 
of Mosely Hill Farm. 

On one of these trips, a startling discovery 
was made, and Roberta says that the credit is 
due entirely to her pony. 

The pair had been having a delightful time 
one morning and had stopped for lunch rather 
early. Roberta was sitting on the ground near 
a large oak tree, and Sunshine Rose was grazing 
near her. On these trips Roberta took lunch 
for herself, but did not take anything for the 
pony. Farmer John said that the grain Sun¬ 
shine Rose received in the morning and in 
the evening was sufficient, and the grass she 

45 


46 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


could eat while Roberta was eating her lunch 
was all she needed. 

Roberta had finished all of her lunch except 
an apple. She was eating this sitting with her 
back toward the pony. Suddenly Roberta felt 
a soft warm something on her cheek. Turning 
her head quickly she saw that Sunshine Rose 
was reaching her nose over her shoulder. 

“You little rascal you, you frightened me,” 
said Roberta. But Sunshine Rose held her nose 
close to Roberta’s face. 

“Oh, I know what you want You want a 
part of my apple. You have been a good pony, 
and I am going to give you half of it.” With 
this, Roberta bit deeply into the apple that 
was already partly eaten and handed the huge 
mouthful to Rose. She laid it on the palm of 
her hand and held her fingers out very stiffly 
so there would be no danger of Rose biting one 
of the fingers in taking up the apple. Her father 
had taught her that this was a safe thing to do, 
because, you know, ponies cannot very well tell 
whether they are going to bite a finger when 
they are eating something out of your hand. 




ROSE DISCOVERS A MYSTERIOUS CAVE 47 


After the pony had finished the apple, she 
wandered away again and Roberta lay down 
on the ground, thinking that she would rest for 
a little bit before riding on. She did not know 
how long she had been asleep, but she did know 
that she was awakened suddenly by a call from 
her pony. Sunshine Rose whinnied loudly, but 
Roberta could not see her. She sprang to her 
feet and looked about. There was no sign of 
the pony. 

The pony whinnied again. Roberta ran in 
the direction of the sound. She broke through 
a patch of hazelnut bushes and stopped, for 
there in front of her was a huge hole in the 
ground and in the bottom of that hole stood 
Sunshine Rose with her nose pointing into the 
air calling loudly for help. 

Roberta did not know what to do. The sides 
of the hole were so steep that it seemed im¬ 
possible for her to get out if she were in the 
hole, and certainly if she could not scramble out, 
it would be impossible for the pony. 

As a matter of fact, Sunshine Rose had tried 
many times to scramble out of her deep prison, 


48 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


and after failing, she began to call to her little 
mistress for help. 

Roberta was a long way from home. She 
did not know how far it was to a house. She 
could see no one, and there was not even a 
road in sight. 

Poor Sunshine Rose! Would Roberta have 
to leave her there? The minute Roberta walked 
away from the edge of the hole, Sunshine Rose 
began to call again and she called so plaintively 
that Roberta did not have the heart to leave her. 

Finally Roberta was calm enough to enable 
her to examine the hole into which the pony 
had fallen. She began to see that the earth 
had fallen in, and that apparently there had 
been no hole there until Sunshine Rose had 
stepped upon the earth which gave way beneath 
her weight. 

Roberta got down on her knees and looked 
inside. She could see that there was an opening 
on either side which made it appear that this 
was an underground cavern. The pony trotted 
back and forth and around her prison, looking 
wistfully at her little mistress. 


ROSE DISCOVERS A MYSTERIOUS CAVE 49 


Roberta called to her and the pony came and 
stood close to where Roberta was kneeling on 
the ground. Roberta then saw that if she did 
climb into the hole that she could get out again 
by standing on the pony’s back and climbing 
to the surface. 

This enabled her to work out a plan of res¬ 
cue. She climbed down on to the pony’s back 
and then down to the bottom of the cave, 
for she could see that it was a cave of some sort 
into which the pony had fallen. 

She approached the east end of the opening 
and found that there was a rather sharp de¬ 
cline which opened into a large underground 
room. It did not seem so very dark, and small 
particles of something on the wall glistened. 

“Well, Rose,” said Roberta, “there can be no 
harm in exploring this cave, but I want you 
to come with me.” 

Taking hold of the reins, she led the pony 
down into the underground room. It was an 
immense affair. The floor was covered with 
sharp particles of stone. The walls were all 
glistening. What sort of stones could these be? 


50 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


Roberta, of course, did not know, and Sun¬ 
shine Rose, having never gone to school, could 
not be expected to know. 

The particles were so attractive that Roberta 
decided to take some with her. She found a 
few loose stones that seemed to shine more than 
the others and picked them up. As they walked 
along farther, Roberta discovered that the cave 
extended deeper and deeper into the hill. 

“We cannot very well get lost, Rose,” she told 
the pony, “because there are no openings at the 
side, and we can always turn around and go 
back to where we came from. Perhaps if we 
keep on walking, we will find some place where 
we can get out.” 

Roberta was right, for it was not long until 
she saw a light ahead and knew that they were 
approaching an opening. 

“It seems funny,” she said to Rose, “that if 
there is an opening to this cave, that no one 
has ever been in here before. Of course, there 
may have been someone here, but it doesn’t look 
that way.” 

When they approached the opening, Roberta 



Roberta saw an opening on either side which made 
it appear li\e an underground cavern 

51 













4 * 


















ROSE DISCOVERS A MYSTERIOUS CAVE 53 

realized why no one had ever entered this cave 
before. The opening was not on level ground, 
but was on the edge of a cliff. Later, when she 
had an opportunity to view the opening from 
the outside, she saw that it was about halfway 
down the side of a steep cliff. At the bottom 
was a river with a wide gravel shore. 

Roberta thought that it would be possible 
for her to slide down the side of the cliff with¬ 
out any harm, but she wondered what she 
could do to get the pony out of the cave safely. 

“Rose, I believe that you can make it, too,” 
she said. “I have seen pictures in the movies 
which showed men riding horses down steep 
cliffs. I will not ride you, but I will go first 
and you can come later.” 

Roberta cautiously climbed out of the open¬ 
ing, letting herself down slowly and little by 
little until she came to a place where the side 
of the cliff was not quite so steep. This part of 
the hill, however, was covered with gravel, and 
as she stepped upon it, she slipped and rolled 
the rest of the way down to the graveled beach. 

“Well, that’s that,” she remarked as she 


54 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


picked herself up. “Now I must get my pony 
out of there.” 

She called to Sunshine Rose, and the pony 
called back to her. “Put your front feet out 
of the hole,” said Roberta. 

Strange to say, Sunshine Rose did exactly as 
her little mistress told her. But she did it very 
cautiously. She put her front feet down the 
side of the cliff just a little way at a time, holding 
her body with her hind feet so that she would 
not slip. 

Roberta kept calling to her and encouraging 
her to leave the safer ground, but Sunshine 
backed up and stepped back into the cave again. 
Roberta was just about to give up when Sun¬ 
shine Rose placed her front feet on the side of 
the cliff again and gradually worked herself out. 
Finally, giving a little leap, she came rolling 
down the side of the cliff, scattering gravel as 
she came and landing in a heap near her little 
mistress. 

“I knew you could do it,” said Roberta, “now 
we are both safe.” 

They were safe indeed, but Roberta’s clothes 




ROSE DISCOVERS A MYSTERIOUS CAVE 55 


were badly torn, and Sunshine Rose had a 
bloody spot on her nose. It was caused by one 
of the sharp rocks over which she had rolled. 

Roberta rode the pony down the river until 
she came to a bridge. The pony scrambled up 
the side of the bank and on to the road. Roberta 
recognized the road and knew the way home. 

Needless to say, the pony traveled rather fast, 
because she was just as anxious to get back to 
her stall as her little mistress was to get to her 
cozy bed. 

After Farmer John listened to die exciting 
story, he asked Roberta to show him the pieces 
of stone she had picked up in the cave. They 
were indeed strange. 

“I will take them to a friend of mine in the 
city,” he said. “Perhaps he will know what 
kind of stone these are.” 

Some days later, Farmer John had a report 
from his friend in the city, and it was this: 
“The stone you sent is a rare mineral . If you 
can secure a deed to the ground on which this 
cave is located, I will arrange with a firm that 
will buy all of this mineral you can supply.” 


56 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


The arrangements were made. Farmer 
John was able to realize a great deal of profit 
from the project. After he had received his 
first check for a shipment of the stone, he said 
to Roberta. “I am going to put half of all 
this in the bank for you, because you discovered 
the cave.” 

“No, I didn’t,” said Roberta. “It was Sun¬ 
shine Rose that discovered it. If she could 
spend the money, I would tell you to put the 
money in the bank for her. But of course she 
can’t; so you can put it in the bank in my name. 
But I am going to see to it that Sunshine Rose 
never wants for anything after this. Instead of 
giving her half of my apple, the next time she 
can have the whole apple.” 



Chapter VII 


SUNSHINE ROSE PROVES HER 
FRIENDSHIP 


jy^’OTHER, isn’t that Sunshine Rose call- 

“It does sound like her call.” 

Roberta, helping her mother with the dishes, 
dropped her towel and ran to the door. 

“Yes, Mother, something is wrong. Sun¬ 
shine Rose is calling me.” 

Out of the kitchen door she went, running 
toward the pasture gate. As she ran, she could 
hear Sunshine Rose calling, and the sound came 
nearer and nearer. 

Roberta and the pony reached the gate about 
the same time. 

“What in the world is the matter, Rose?” 
asked Roberta. 

The pony ran a short distance down the pas¬ 
ture lane and then came back toward the gate 
again, whinnying every few steps. Roberta 

57 


58 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


tried to take hold of her halter, but the pony 
dashed off down the lane. It was apparent that 
something was wrong in the pasture, and the 
pony was trying to tell Roberta to follow her. 

Roberta started down the lane. Then she 
happened to think that perhaps she might need 
help if something really were wrong. She re¬ 
membered that her father was working in the 
field near the end of the lane and as she passed 
she called to him. 

In the meantime, Sunshine Rose was running 
ahead, turning around and coming back almost 
to her little playmate, and then dashing off 
again, urging Roberta to hurry along. 

Roberta and her father followed the pony as 
fast as they could, and she finally led them to 
an out-of-the-way place in the woods near the 
bottom of a steep hill. She ran up to a clump 
of bushes, the roots of which were deeply cov¬ 
ered with autumn leaves. There she stopped 
and, instead of running back and forth, stood 
shaking her head, distending her nostrils, and 
pointing her ears toward the center of the 
clump of bushes. 


SUNSHINE ROSE PROVES HER FRIENDSHIP 59 

“What in the world can be wrong?” asked 
Farmer John. When he reached the side of 
the pony, he patted her on the neck and peered 
into the bushes. 

At first he saw nothing. Then he pushed 
the bushes aside. 

“Well, well, well,” he said, “no wonder you 
wanted us to come down here. Something is 
wrong with your old friend, Lassie.” 

Sure enough, there lay Farmer John’s collie 
dog, Lassie, in a pile of leaves. 

As Farmer John approached, she looked up 
at him with wistful eyes. He patted her head 
gently and began to examine her. 

As he moved her body, he discovered blood 
on the leaves and after turning her over as care¬ 
fully as he could, he found that one of her 
hind legs was badly wounded and was bleeding 
freely. 

“Roberta,” he said, “we must bind up this 
wound quickly, or poor Lassie will bleed to 
death. But what shall we use to bind her leg.” 

“Tear off the tail of your shirt,” Roberta sug¬ 
gested. “Wrap that around Lassie’s leg and I 


60 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


will take off one of my stockings, and you can 
use that to tie the bandage with.” 

Farmer John saw that there was no time to 
be lost, for Lassie’s head had already dropped 
back on to the ground in exhaustion. He quickly 
tore off the tail of his shirt, bound it carefully 
around the wound, and by that time, Roberta’s 
stocking was ready to tie it in place. 

“We can’t leave Lassie here, Daddy,” said 
Roberta when the bandaging had been com¬ 
pleted. 

“No, that is true,” said her father, “but how 
will we get her back home. She is rather heavy 
for me to carry.” 

“Put her on Sunshine Rose’s back,” said 
Roberta. “She will carry her home. If she 
thinks enough of Lassie to bring us to help her, 
she will certainly be willing to carry her back 
to the barn.” 

Sunshine Rose’s back was broad, but Farmer 
John felt that it would be a little uncomfortable 
for the dog as it would be difficult to hold her 
body steady. So he looked about and finally 
made a small platform out of limbs of trees. 



SUNSHINE ROSE PROVES HER FRIENDSHIP 61 


By weaving these together, he made a flat sur¬ 
face large enough to hold Lassie’s body. 

He placed the platform on the pony’s back 
and then carefully lifted the dog on to that. 
He held the platform on one side and Roberta 
held it steady on the other. The pony walked 
carefully and slowly without any guiding, for 
she appeared to know exactly what was wanted. 

When the little caravan arrived at the barn, 
the dog was placed in a warm place on a soft 
bed of straw and Farmer John called the vet¬ 
erinary doctor, who dressed the wound prop¬ 
erly. The doctor also gave instructitons for Las¬ 
sie’s care. 

After this had all been done, Roberta started 
out to look for her pony. She found her back 
of the hog house lying down. 

“Sunshine Rose, I want to tell you what a 
fine pony you are,” she said. Sunshine Rose did 
no lift her head with her usual vigor. 

“What’s the matter? Have you been hurt, 
too?” Roberta asked. She called her father and 
they looked about and finally discovered that 
the pony, also, had a wound on her leg. 


62 


SUNSHINE ROSE 



When they had taken care of her wound, 
Roberta said: “Daddy, what do you suppose 
happened to Lassie and Sunshine Rose? Let’s 
go back to the pasture and see if we can find 
out.” 

Her father put away the team with which he 
had been working in the field and which he had 
left tied to a post when he had gone with 
Roberta to follow her pony. 

“I think,” he said, “I had better take my 
gun with me. Evidently something vicious has 
attacked the pony and the dog.” 

Roberta’s mother wanted her to stay at home, 
but she could not be persuaded and her father 
said that he thought that there would be no 
danger. 

They went back to the place where they had 
found the wounded dog and began to look 
about. Halfway up the hill, they found signs 
of a struggle. Bushes had been broken, the 
dirt had been torn up here and there, and on 
the sides of two or three trees were spots of 
blood and tufts of hair. 

Farmer John started down the hill again and 



SUNSHINE ROSE PROVES HER FRIENDSHIP 63 


at the bottom he turned in the opposite direc¬ 
tion from the house. He examined the clump 
of bushes carefully. He finally saw something 
ahead of him and then he stopped. Roberta 
saw it, too. It was an animal lying partly hidden 
in the bushes. They approached it carefully, 
Farmer John ready with his gun in case of 
danger. 

The object did not move. But still Farmer 
John was cautious because he knew that some 
animals lie perfectly still when they are ready 
to spring. He cautioned Roberta to stay a little 
way behind while he circled about the animal 
which lay concealed in the bushes. 

As he came closer and was able to get a better 
view, he saw that the animal lying there was 
a huge wolf. 

“So this accounts for all the trouble,” said 
Farmer John, “I think he has already met his 
fate. I will not need the gun.” 

He walked up to the animal and turned it 
over with his foot. The wolf was dead. He 
examined the body carefully and he found that 
the wolf’s skull had been broken. Roberta put 


64 


SUNSHINE ROSE 


her hand on the animal’s forehead and she could 
feel the broken bone under the hide. 

“Your pony is certainly the hero of the day, 
Roberta,” said Farmer John. “She not only 
killed this wolf which attacked Lassie, but she 
saved Lassie’s life by getting us to her side 
quickly. The doctor says both Lassie and Sun¬ 
shine Rose will be all right in a few days. But 
Sunshine Rose certainly deserves a medal of 
honor.” 















JU^- 


1931 




1 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 








































































































